If You're Military, MBA Might Be a Good Fit

"Military personnel have the leadership skills, the ethics, drive, and decision-making skills that major corporations want, however, they are often lacking the theoretical business know-how." That's what Ethan Hanabury, Senior Associate Dean for Degree Programs at Columbia Business School observes.
Those unique skills -- and the lack of a few key skills -- lead many military personnel to MBA schools. Dean Hanabury suggests military applying to schools such as Columbia, reach out to military already on campus to get tips to writing strong applications. He also says military should highlight their copious leadership skills which corporations find tremendously attractive. Another suggestion -- chances are it's not easy to address the GMAT while overseas, but practice, take classes, whatever it takes to do well on the test.
Another tip Dean Hanabury has - keep in mind if you're military that your experience may not translate well for admissions officers who perhaps have not had any military experience. So, in the application process, translate that experience to general terms, like leadership, and decision-making.
Columbia is in the Yellow Ribbon Program, and also participates in the GI Bill and the Post 911 GI Bill. Hanabury reminds you to network with veterans for great recommendations.
Hanabury is just one of the more than a dozen guests on our upcoming shows Military MBA: From the Military to Corporate America: Getting In and the second show focuses on Fitting In. We'll let you know when these post.

Military --- Good Fit for Corporate Life

The next generation of CEO's could very well spring from the military. And Melissa Knueven -- the Associate Director at the Global Citizen Initiatives at the Graduate Management Admission Council -- says military are strong young leaders, who have been tested under stressful situations most of us could never even imagine. They are able, she says, to solve problems with imperfect information. Knueven says, add the MBA, and you have a strong leader who now has an operations, accounting, and finance background -- a holistic view of business.

I interviewed Melissa for an upcoming show we call Military MBA: From the Military to Corporate America. There are two shows, actually, one subtitled Getting In, and the other is Fitting In. I'll let you know when they're posted on MBAPodcaster.com. And, while we're explaining things -- Melissa is with the council that owns the GMAT and the Association of Graduate Schools of Business around the world.

If you are military, and, at this point, searching for the right fit to pursue your MBA, Melissa says the best schools will be in close proximity to military installations, offer part-time or flex-time programs, and they'll have strong military networks and alumni base.

She says look for military-friendly schools. GMAC considers schools military-friendly if they do things like waive the application fee, they have financial aid available, and they offer a one-year deferment policy, keeping the spot for MBA students who may be deployed.

We have interviewed more than a dozen people for this show, so keep watching this space. One more comment from Melissa Knueven with GMAC:

"Whether you're transitioning out of the military into corporate life, or staying in, career-military, the MBA combined with that experience just makes these people forces to be reckoned with."